


5 Tropes Harrison Didn't Get (And 1 He Kinda Did)

by Readerofmuch



Category: Kaleidotrope (Podcast)
Genre: 5+1, I wrote this in like a day, Meet-Cute, Other, Siddlesmith magic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-17
Updated: 2018-08-17
Packaged: 2019-06-28 15:47:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,135
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15710319
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Readerofmuch/pseuds/Readerofmuch
Summary: Exactly what it says on the tin, folks.





	5 Tropes Harrison Didn't Get (And 1 He Kinda Did)

**Author's Note:**

> Alright, here it is. I wrote this in about a day, and I feel very accomplished. This work has no major triggers, but a slight warning for implied/referenced abusive relationship and emetophobia. Check the notes at the bottom for more specific details.

5 Tropes That Harrison Didn’t Get (and the one he did)

 

  1. Mapped Meet-Cute



 

Harrison was pretty sure he knew where he was now. It was only his third time on campus, but he'd been memorizing the map for ages. Plus, he'd moved now. He had to know s way around. Otherwise, what was he even doing?

 

Of course, he didn't know his name was for sure going to be Harrison yet.  He was still mullIng the possibility of changing it. There were so many interesting possibilities. Maybe something more feminine?

 

He didn't have all that much time to consider it. A freshman brandishing a paper map in front of him like a shield and a he/him button from orientation on his lapel (he had a lapel!)  didn't look up quite in time to avoid a rather dramatic collision. As he hit the ground, Harrison bit back a swear and a smile. Was this it?

 

“Oh god, I'm so sorry,” said the freshman.  He had an accent! It was British and exceptionally sexy. 

 

“It's okay,” promised Harrison, picking up the books that had scattered everywhere. Why did he even have textbooks? Distribution wasn't until next Tuesday! Probably the Siddlesmith magic. 

 

“No, it's not. I was so  _ stupid _ , I-” 

 

Harrison handed back  _ Ethics of Journalism  _ firmly.

 

“Don't worry about it! This place is confusing. I only just figured it out myself. I'm Harrison, by the way. For now.”

 

“Drew,” said the freshman, shifting his books awkwardly and sticking his hand out. Harrison gave it a firm shake and smiled. This was it!

 

“So, where are you trying to go, Drew?” He asked as they both stood. “Maybe I can help.”

 

He reached out a hand for the map, but Drew pulled it back sharply. 

 

“No!”

 

Harrison put his hands up and stepped back. Drew looked sheepish, but he didn't move forward. Instead, he shook his head again. 

 

“I don’t really think my- I don’t think that’s a good idea.”

 

Harrison paused and looked at the poor guy. He looked like he was genuinely scared. 

 

“Are you okay?”

 

Drew didn’t nod, exactly, so much as he bobbed once before disappearing in a cloud of stammered excuses. He didn’t even leave a telltale piece of paper behind for Harrison to decipher and return, leading to their eventual happy ending after dating through the entirety of their time at Siddlesmith. 

 

Still, it was probably a little much to expect the Siddlesmith magic to work before he had even officially started. Harrison decided to console himself with the campus coffee shop. What as it, Kish’s? Either way, he had earned it after a day like this. 

 

(He didn’t see the way the other boy watched him as he left, didn’t notice the desperation in his eyes. How could he? Drew was supposed to be long gone).

 

  1. Winter weather woes



 

Admittedly, Harrison usually did not take the bus. He had to walk what felt like halfway to campus just to get to his stop (okay, so it was five minutes, but still) and then ride the bus across town for something like twelve stops before it actually arrived at the stop near Smith Hall. But when a freak snowstorm left most of the town impassable by bike and bought the whole school a five day weekend, everyone was suffering. 

 

His stop was near the beginning of the route though, so he managed to find a seat. He sat on the uncomfortable chair for three stops before  _ They _ got on. And yes, they were absolutely a  _ They _ , with full capitalization.  _ They  _ were absolutely gorgeous, wrapped in what looked to be at least two sweaters, a poofy overcoat and what looked to be a handmade scarf. Curly dark hair was completely untamed by the beanie nestled amidst it. Their skin was a gorgeous tawny (or at least, what little of it was visible) and they had striking green eyes. Harrison wasn’t gawking, by any means. He was  _ appreciating  _ them, thank-you-very-much. 

 

Before they could manage to pull of their bulky mitten and grab hold of the pole, though, the bus jerked into motion. Harrison watched as t _ hey _ stumbled in slow motion and began to stumble forward. He braced himself for the impending collision (and the impending trope!) as they stumbled backwards onto the uncommonly pale blond behind them. 

 

“Oh my gosh, I am so sorry,I- wow,”  _ they  _ said in lightly accented English.

 

The blond smiled dopily for a second before shifting. 

 

“You know, if you wanted this seat, you could have asked.”

 

_ They  _ giggle as the blond stood up and offered his seat gallantly. Both of them giggled as  _ they  _ struggled to sit down in all of their winter dear. Harrison put both earbuds in and turned up his ABBA playlist. 

 

(Harrison didn’t look up when the cute freshman from the first day got on on the bus. He didn’t even notice him, or his black eye).

  
  


  1.  Petition Particularity



 

As a proud member of the school’s Queer Student Union, Harrison spent plenty of time pounding the pavement. It was just his luck though, that he’d drawn the last slot of the day, 4-6. He’d only been out for about fifteen minutes when the sky had opened up, sending half a dozen students sprinting for cover. Harrison watched as a pair of strangers shared an umbrella, and a pile of notes dropped in a sudden puddle garnered a sympathetic response. He sneezed, just once. No one answered. It was his second September here, and he was still single. This sucked. 

 

After a few seconds of self pity, Harrison came back to himself. He had important work to do. The dean wasn’t listening to the students, and there was going to be hell to pay. The head of the Queer Student Union and the Student Body were working together (and “working” together, no doubt) to get this issue in front of the administration, but they still needed to prove they had the full force of the student body behind them. Which was where Harrison came in. 

 

“Pardon me, would you like to sign a petition for student rights on campus?”

 

A student ducked at his voice and then somersaulted away, backpack and all. Another smiled, and signed something before sprinting away. 

 

Jesus. 

 

When he saw a girl a recognized vaguely from English 212 coming towards him with a tray of to-go cups, his heart soared. When she kept right on walking, it plummeted again. 

 

“Um, pardon me,” said a quiet voice behind him. Harrison whirled with a little too much  enthusiasm and smiled. 

 

“Hey there! You want to sign the petition?”

 

The girl in the raincoat shook her head (Harrison really appreciated the pronoun buttons on campus. He didn't been misgendered in his entire time here). 

 

“I just- I wanted to tell you that I’m glad I have my library card, because I’m definitely checking you out!”

 

She sounded confident, but she looked like she was hoping the sky would open up and send a bolt of lightning down upon her.

 

“Are you okay?” asked Harrison, before he could think. 

 

“Do you have a bandaid? I think I scraped my knee falling for you.”

 

“Is this some bullshit sorority thing?”

 

The girl nodded minutely. 

 

“Is your name wi-fi? Because I’m feeling a real connection.”

 

“I’m Harrison actually, and I feel like you could use some coffee.”

 

“Oh no,I don’t- I’m not-”

 

Harrison frowned. 

 

“Not like that, I promise. You just look like you need someone to take you out of this situation.”

 

He nodded at the group of girls giggling at his shy new friend.

 

“You’re a freshman, right?”

 

She nodded, and the two started walking.  

 

“Sororities are bullshit, especially if they make you do things you’re uncomfortable with. Family legacy or not-”

 

“How did you guess?” 

 

“It’s Siddlesmith,” he said, explaining everything. She nodded.

  
  


“You cn make your own way here. You don’t need them. Come on, I’ll show you the best coffee shop on campus.”

 

Maybe this wasn’t his trope, but he got at least one more signature. This was worth it. Plus, Sarah had a great sense of humour. She didn’t need some sorority to find her way at Siddlesmith (the way she was making eyes at the barista made that clearer than her words ever could).  

 

(He didn’t see the student who’d been trying to work up the courage to approach for the last ten minutes wilt as he walked away, didn’t offer him the petition to sign. Harrison certainly didn’t notice how familiar he looked). 

  
  
  


  1. EDM extra-curriculars



 

When a classmate had invited him to a party, Harrison had imagined he’d have a good time. He wasn’t big into the party scene, but he could play beer pong with the best of them. What he didn't pictured was winding up with a fading buzz while a senior alternately cried on his shoulder and apologized to him. The dance floor was pretty shitty- just a few square feet in the middle of the room full of drunk people gyrating and grinding clumsily against each other.

 

“Thanks s’mush Harry, y’r sush a goo’ lissner.”

 

Harrison patted his new “friend” on the back and didn’t correct his name. They’d said it wrong three times already. What was one more, really? 

 

Who on earth had ever thought this would be romantic?

 

“Inder? Are you somewhere around here?”

 

The girl in Harrison’s arms hiccuped and lifted her hand. 

 

“Inder! Thank goodness! I thought you’d left.”

 

The girl who finally made her way into their corner was objectively gorgeous, from the top of her ink coloured curls to the soles of her camouflage combat boots. 

 

“Thank you so much for keeping her safe,” said the stranger. “I can take her if you like.”

 

“C’mon Div, ‘m fiiiiiine. I c’n walk by mysel-oops!”

 

Inder pushed herself off of Harrison only to fall back onto him immediately. She laughed, and Div giggled too with a sound like tinkling wine glasses.

 

“Here we go,” said Harrison. “You ready Inder? Let’s get you back with your friend, and then you can go home.”

 

“Oh she’s actually my-” Harrison braced- “sister. I just came to take her home. I’m a sophomore, not old enough to drink.”

 

“Me too, actually.”

 

Harrison carefully transferred Inder’s arm from his shoulders to Div’s. 

 

“I’m Harrison, by the way.”

 

“Divjot,” said Div. “Listen, if you’re living anywhere near here, I can give you a ride. It’s the least I can do after you took care of Inder for me.”

 

“Sure,” said Harrison, his heart soaring, “That would be-”

 

That was when Inder leaned over and vomited on him. 

 

Harrison cleaned himself up alone, and walked home. Div had still offered to drop him, but the spark was gone and it was clear she just wanted to go home. Harrison couldn’t have agreed more. 

 

(Since he’d been busy comforting Inder, eh didn't had the chance to make the rounds and notice the half drunk Brit, or invite him to dance. It’s good he didn’t- the Brit would have refused. It would be a while before he was ready to dance with anyone). 

 

  1. Coffee Catastrophe



 

At this point, students bumping into each other and spilling coffee was such a stale of Siddlesmith that no beverage was served at over 40 degrees celsius, or 104 degrees in the scale that actual people used anywhere on the grounds. This meant that when Harrison found himself in freefall after stumbling on someone’s backpack, he wasn’t exactly surprised. He mourned his caffe-latte mochaccino as he fell, but it was over quickly as he landed sprawled on-

 

“Oof!”

 

The concrete bench. Beside him, the guy who scrambled out of the way was apologizing frantically for dodging- “But I just saw you coming and I had my moleskine out and I-”

 

Harrison waved him off as he stood. 

 

“I’m fine, don’t worry.”

 

The stranger’s accent was cute, and his notebook was fantastic. This wasn’t Harrison’s trope, though. He was starting to doubt that he would the one, except of course he wasn’t, that would be ridiculous. All he needed was a good dose of the Siddlesmith magic. That would do it. 

 

(Of course he didn’t see the eyes on his back. How could he, when he was so determined to keep looking forward? He didn’t realize what he was looking for was in the past. That was good, though. It was waiting in the future too. 

 

+1 Co-host Cuteness 

 

“Hi!”

 

“Hi?”

 

“Sorry I’m late.”

 

“Oh, no worries. Your schedule is clearly more important than the radio station’s schedule.”

 

“I brought cookies?”

 

(If he didn’t notice the way Drew looked at him, it was only because he was too busy looking right back at him. It wasn't a trope, exactly but it was a beginning. It was the start of a whole new story). 

**Author's Note:**

> 1\. The implied/referenced abuse is a brief reference to controlling behavior in number one, and a mention of a black eye in two. 
> 
> 2\. The emetophobia is found in entry four. You can either skip it entirely, or stop at 
> 
> “Sure,” said Harrison, his heart soaring, “That would be-”
> 
> and begin again at the parentheses.


End file.
